


Lost Ground & Lost Causes

by Spike_1790



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-26
Updated: 2012-06-26
Packaged: 2017-11-12 05:38:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/487323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spike_1790/pseuds/Spike_1790
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to Count Your Losses. Not everyone is as happy for Spike and Colin as they had hoped. Two possible endings.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lost Ground & Lost Causes

**Author's Note:**

> There are two possible endings to this fic. The first one is Spike/oc and the second one is Spike/Xander. Chose which pairing you like best :)

Xander wasn’t particularly happy about this party. When his boss had arranged a Christmas party, he hadn’t planned on attending. When things with Spike had gone bad, relationship-wise, Xander had bailed for a while. The girls had eventually dragged him out of his pretty funky smelling bedroom for a demon slaying mission, but that had meant he’d had to face Spike.

The vampire had been happier than Xander had ever seen him. He was dressed differently- white t-shirt, blue jeans, no duster- and his hair was in its naturally curly state. Ironically, the ending of the relationship that at the time Xander hadn’t even been aware of meant that they were much better friends now. However, it also meant that he had to put up with Colin hanging around.

Once Colin had got over the initial shock of finding out the things that went bump in the night were real he had been a real asset to the Scoobies. He was good at research and got on great with the girls, and didn’t that just grate on Xander’s nerves. Yes, Xander could admit that he was harbouring a lot of resentment. Which was why he didn’t want to go to this stupid party.

When he had found out it was a ‘plus wives and girlfriends’ deal, his initial thoughts had been to ask one of the girls, but when they had all declined, he was forced to deal with the realisation that he would be in a room with Spike and Colin all night. Apart, he could deal. Well, he could ignore Colin and make snide remarks towards Spike. But when they were together, it was too much for him. Hell, realising he had feelings for the evil undead was too much for him, but losing said evil undead to one of his colleagues? That _really_ hurt.

Right now, the pair were sat on the stairs in the magic box, a place that used to be reserved just for Spike, feeding each other chocolate. Buffy, Willow and Tara didn’t mind. Dawn was at school but if she’d been there, she wouldn’t have minded either. But Xander minded.

“Geez, get a room guys.”

Buffy looked up from the thick tome she had been staring at vacantly for the last hour or so. “What’s your problem, Xan?”

“Problem? No problem. Just that the Biteless Wonder over there is about 5 minutes away from a display of public nudity.” Xander risked a glance at the pair on the steps, who were now lounging back, snogging like horny teenagers while keeping their hands above the waist. Spike’s fingers were tracing the tiny strip of exposed skin on Colin’s side where his shirt had ridden up. Xander sighed, rolled his eyes, and left the shop, figuring a few hours of paperwork would be better than watching his not-quite-ex sucking face.

***

Spike and Colin left not long after Xander did, one under a heavy blanket and the other out in the sun. Buffy and Willow sighed.

“I don’t know why Xan’s so against Spike being happy. He didn’t even _want_ Spike until he found out he couldn’t have him,” Buffy said, scowling slightly at the seat Xander had vacated.

“I like Spike being happy,” Willow commented. “He’s much more fun to spend time with. And he’s cute when he’s not wearing black with more black. And less scary.”

“You think Spike’s cute?” Tara asked, wrinkling her nose in an adorable sort of way. “Should I be worried?”

“No! I only want you, sweetie,” Willow reassured her girlfriend. The two held hands, while Buffy thought about what Willow had said.

“If I didn’t know he was a vampire, I would have to say that Spike is pretty damn lickable, especially when he’s making out with another guy… What?” Willow and Tara just stared at her.

***

The basement was cold. Spike’s clothes were scattered over the floor. When he said the blonde could stay a couple of days while his crypt de-flooded, Xander hadn’t been expecting to clear up after him all the damn time. Although, those weren’t Spike’s underpants. Spike didn’t _wear_ underpants.

Two sets of clothes led a trail towards the pulled out bed, where a very naked Spike and an equally naked Colin were rutting mindlessly against each other. For a few moments, Xander was too stunned to speak, until Spike’s moaned “Oh God, I’m gunna cum. Finish with me, luv? Need to feel you…” snapped him out of his reverie.

“WHAT THE FUCK, SPIKE?!” Xander exploded, just as Spike and Colin did the same, although in a different, much messier- and sexier- way. “In my goddamn bed?! Get dressed and get the fuck out.”

Colin had the good grace to look ashamed and started to redress, but Spike made no move to leave. Instead, he stared levelly at Xander, making it abundantly clear just what he thought of that idea. “You said I could live here for a while. If you didn’t mean it, why did you say it?”

“I said you could stay, not that you could do the nasty in _my_ bed!”

“I didn’t think you’d be back for a while. We needed some time together.”

“And you couldn’t have gone to his place?” Xander pointed unceremoniously at Colin, who was bright red but now fully dressed.

“Colin’s staying with his parents. His ex had the flat in her name.”

“So go to his parent’s place. Just get out of my home. I have to burn the bed and get ready for this stupid party.” Xander scooped up Spike’s clothes, shoved them towards the naked vampire and stalked into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.  

***

Spike dressed in silence, avoiding eye contact with Colin. When dressed and out of the basement again, Spike stopped, wrapping his arm around Colin’s muscular waist.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled against the other man’s neck.

“I know. That was just really embarrassing.”

“Yeah. Maybe we should just tell your parents.” They broke the embrace to continue walking. “We’re going to have to go there anyway if we wanna go to this party of yours.”

“I dunno, Spike. I’m not really in a party mood right now. I’m too stressed for that.”

Spike looked upset. “Sorry. I thought you finished too, but…” he mumbled, staring down at the scuffed toes of his Docs.

Colin stopped the blonde talking with a finger to those soft lips. “I did. You were amazing. Don’t ever think you’re not. But if it was you? If one of your co-workers saw you in bed like that…?”

“Yeah, I get it. We could go out for a meal instead? And if you feel like inviting your parents and sharing some relationship style information…?”

Colin grinned. “You’re not going to let it go, are you?”

Spike grinned back. “Nope. You’re stuck with me, pet.”

Colin pulled Spike into a bone-crushing hug. “Good.”

***

Xander didn’t burn the bed, but he did have Willow come over and magically clean it. And if he went into a little too much detail about exactly _why_ it needed cleaning, well, she shouldn’t have asked. It did mean she wouldn’t be able to look Spike in the eye for a while though, so Xander counted it as a win in his books.  

***

Colin booked the table at the restaurant before phoning his parents. Nervous didn’t even begin to describe how he felt. He gave some vague excuse as to why they were going out for dinner, and couldn’t decide if he was happy or not that they’d agreed. Obviously they knew something was up. Hopefully they wouldn’t make a scene in a public place if it turned out they didn’t approve.

Now, sitting in the quiet restaurant, waiting for his parents to join them, he wasn’t so sure he could go through with it. The only comfort was Spike’s hand on his knee, a tangible connection to his lover.

“Colin?” A female voice asked, making Colin jump slightly.

“Hey, mom, dad. How are you? How was your walk here? Sit down, order food…” Spike smiled. Colin could babble with the best of them. Hell, he could even give Willow a run for her money, and that was saying something.

The older couple sat opposite Spike and Colin, the heavy, dark wood table between them. “Are you going to introduce us to your friend?” asked Colin’s father. He was a tall man, with a kind face. His hair was greying at the temples. He looked… ordinary. Not that Spike had been expecting him to look demon-y or anything. Just… not someone _this_ ordinary.

“Oh, yeah. Mom, dad, this is Will.”

“Hello, Will. I’m Joanne and this is Steve.” Joanne was just as ordinary as Steve. Her hair was obviously dyed to cover the grey hairs, and she had a few wrinkles near the corners of her eyes, but she was just a normal person. Maybe it was the Hellmouth, or his century as a vampire, but Spike wasn’t used to normal people.

“Please, call me Spike,” he said, shaking Steve’s hand.

“What an unusual name,” Joanne commented. “How did you come to pick up a name like that?” She sounded genuinely interested and if Spike were able, he would have been sweating buckets.

“Well, er… I used to, um, work on the railroads. Got in an accident with a railroad spike and the name sort of stuck,” he lied. Colin’s fingers brushed against his knee, the effect calming, putting Spike at ease.

Steve took a sip of wine and summoned a waiter, who took their orders and hurried off to the kitchen. When the usual pleasantries had been exchanged –‘lovely weather we’re having’, ‘you know, cousin Susan got a job in a bakery’- the conversation turned to love lives. Steve was the one to thank for that.

“So son, where’s that nice young girl you were dating? Rachel something?”

“Rebecca,” Joanne corrected.

“Yes, her. Did you two break up? I was rather hoping to hear news of grandchildren in the near future, but if you’ve had a fight, I suppose we’ll just have to wait,” he chuckled, patting Joanne’s hand affectionately as she nodded.

Colin cleared his throat. “Well, that’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about,” he began. “I left Rebecca.” Joanne made a sympathetic noise, but Colin held one hand up to forestall any questions. “I’m gay.”

Spike kept his eyes on Colin, partly to make sure his boyfriend was okay, but mostly to avoid the disapproving glares of Joanne and Steve. He needn’t have worried. Steve stood up, put on his jacket and left the restaurant, Joanne following close behind. Colin didn’t move a muscle. The waiter bustled over to their table, laden with plates of steak and vegetables. As soon as the waiter had left, Spike pulled a roll of cash from his pocket and peeled of enough to cover the bill and a tip, and pulled Colin to his feet. They left the restaurant in silence.

The cool night air hit Spike the second they stepped outside. Knowing there was nothing he could say or do to fix the situation, he said the only thing he could think of. “Want to go get blind drunk at the Christmas party and forget tonight ever happened?”

Colin breathed out a shaky laugh. “Hell yes.”

***

  
  
  


**The Spike/Colin Happy Ending**

Xander was very drunk by the time he caught sight of a flash of platinum blonde hair. The drinks had been flowing and everyone had had their fair share of alcohol. Xander had danced with everyone, regardless of who they were or their gender. To the casual observer, it looked as though he was trying to get knocked unconscious by a bunch of burly construction workers jealous of their girlfriends flirting with another man. But to Xander, all he was aiming for was to forget. Forget Spike. Forget Colin. Forget he was going to be single for Christmas. Forget the whole sorry year.

He was sure he was going crazy. Wishful thinking was telling him that Spike had shown up to the party after all, and instead of being with Colin, he was with a woman. A slender, good looking woman that Xander was sure he had met before somewhere. Colin appeared on the woman’s other side, and together the two men steered her towards Xander, who was staring dazedly at the trio.

“Harris, this is Colin’s ex, Rebecca.” Rebecca waved slightly and gave Xander a seductive smile. Xander gave her a goofy grin in return. “Rebecca, this is Xander Harris, my… sort-of ex. You two kiddies play nice now.” And with that, Spike and Colin hurried over to the bar. It had been a spare of the moment decision, setting Xander up with Rebecca, but the more the two men drank, the better an idea it seemed.

When the party came to an end, tired people leaving for home, Spike glanced over to the corner of the hall he had last seen Xander in. He tapped Colin on the shoulder and pointed to the couple passionately kissing. Colin laughed. It was the best sound Spike had heard all day.

They downed the last of their drinks and headed back out into the night, Colin swaying slightly, held up by Spike. They had walked less than a block when Colin stopped and looked at Spike.

“I do love you, y’know,” he slurred. “I don’t care what my parents think. You’re all that matters.”

Spike smiled. “I love you too, pet. So what do you want to do now?”

Colin thought about this, the effort of decision making while under the influence showing clearly on his face, making Spike smile even more. “Let’s go to Europe,” he said at last.

Spike kissed the top of Colin’s head. “Whatever you want, luv. Whatever you want.”

  
  
  


**The Spander Happy Ending**

Spike drove to the party in silence. The idea was to let Colin think things through, to decide how he wanted to handle the situation, but it wasn’t looking good. When push came to shove, Spike knew there was no way he could compete with family. Colin would end up resenting him, and they would break up. Whether that would be in a week or a decade, he couldn’t tell, but it would happen, and it would be messy.

They pulled up on the busy street, and Spike instantly spotted Xander’s car amongst the sea of colourful metal. Even though he was with Colin, and he was happy, there was still something inside of him that wanted to be with Xander. He sighed. Xander had made it clear enough before that he didn’t want to be with Spike, regardless of the pheromones that had been better than a siren announcing ‘Xander wants Spike!’.

Spike moved top open the car door, but was stopped by Colin’s hand closing on his bicep. From the look in Colin’s eyes, Spike knew what was coming.

“Spike,” Colin began, the rest of the words sticking in his throat. “Spike, I love you-“

Spike put one finger against Colin’s lips to silence what didn’t need to be said. “Let’s not do the whole ‘long goodbye’ thing. If you change your mind… If you change your mind, I hope you meet someone you love.” Spike got out the car, leaving Colin sitting in the passenger seat, tears streaming down his face.

Inside the building, Xander was easy to find. He was dancing rather drunkenly, and everyone was giving him a wide berth to save their feet from being stepped on. Spike slipped in behind Xander, arms circling the brunette’s waist. Xander turned to face the man holding him. Surprise was written all over his face.

“Want to try again? You and me?” Spike murmured, just loud enough to be heard above the atrocious disco music blaring out the speakers.

“What about Colin?” Xander asked, genuinely confused.

“He made his choice. So what do ya say, Harris? Slayer’s white knight ready to go steady with a blood sucking fiend?” Spike asked with a smirk. Xander kissed him, hard, paying no attention to their audience. He only cared that Spike was kissing him back.

END.

  



End file.
